Eileen Swanson's Tales

>>March 17th, 2010

I decided to try out road racing again.  I had raced for a year back at the end of 2003 and part of 2004.   To be honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of racing bikes back then, but something in me this year said I should give it another shot.  So with the support of Wells Fargo Racing Team, I started out with a 48 mile road race 5 weeks ago.  It was awesome and I had a blast with one other teammate in my race.  We placed 1st and 4th.  YAY, it was a great start for sure. 

A week later I thought I could do a team time trial after not riding my tt bike for over 5 months.  Smart decision right?!  Wow, did I pay for it.   First off my teammate is 3 times faster than me, yup Reid.  Secondly, we got to the race start late and didn’t have time to warm up.  Yikes!  But optimistically I thought we would still be able to pull it off.  Not the case….we went from 0 to 30 from the start and I was holding on for dear life.  Withing 4 miles, I was toast, done, fried!!  My legs were on fire and all I could do was spin to try to flush them out.  Not even 18 mph was an option at this point.  Yup, a bummer, but more importantly a HUGE LESSON learned!  I HAVE to warm up.  I can no longer just jump into a race and hope that my legs will carry me through no matter what, that was the case years ago, but yes I am getting older

Next race up just a week later, Snelling RR.  This race was mixed with crazy weather and road conditions and another super cool experience.  50 miles of racing fun, slight rain, lots of rough roads and flooding!  We had huge flooded areas on the road that we had to ride through.  I’m talking 4 to 6 inches deep and 400 ft long.  Yes many crashes and attacks all occurred in these sections of the race.   It really helped to have good bike handling skills throughout these crazy sections.  Tyler Stewart, a local pro, Tracy Hogan and I had a blast talking strategy and racing together for the first time in a road race.  Tyler attacked tons and got attacked, Tracy covered, I covered, some others covered, it was all so much fun!  Within the last 400 meters of the race, I had a good position on the inside, but as soon as we rounded the last turn, some chick dove right into my spot, nearly taking me out so I slowed and lost momentum.  I need to learn to be more aggressive.  But Ty, Tracy and I still finished in the breakaway pack and top 15. 

 

4th race in row was MercoRR.  This race is a huge one with the likes of Colubia High Road, Tibco, Peanut Butter and CO 2012, Touchstone, to name a few of the pro teams.  I was nervous but excited to race against these amazing women.  I felt way more at ease when Alison Starnes of Tibco, approached me prior to the start of the race and said “hey do you remember me? we rode together at the best buddies ride.”  Of course I remembered her, she is awesome, so strong, so sweet!  Then Emma Rickards of Tibco gave me a big hug and said good to see you again…. Aww, I was feeling the roadie love.  Seriously though, I love these girls from Tibco, they are super strong, successful, and sweet.  So, the race went something like this…..start, attack, attack, attack, I went for a break with the pro road champ, got caught, nearly fell off, held on, attack, attack, suffer, suffer, suffer, and finished.   72 miles done, average 23 mph.  I was proud of this effort, I held on as long as I could with the best of the best in road racing and made it to the finish!  The current World Champion from Germany won the race and 3rd went to the current crit champ, 15th went to the current road race champ!  NICE!!

Ok, lastly a Stage Race this past weekend.  I realized after the fact, that this was a wee bit too much for my body to handle.  Too many races in a row, not enough recovery.  Again, fun to race with Tyler and Tracy.  We had a good time in the crit, Tyler killed the TT.  Tracy did awesome too.  I survived.  Just didn’t feel like myself.  I felt lethargic and achy.  But I did have fun hanging out and racing with friends.  Stage 3 of the stage race was not going to happen.  I woke up the next morning feeling sick again and called it a day.  Reid also was feeling sick, so we decided it would be best to rest, recover and get ready for the next race in 2 weeks.  Smart decision that we were happy with.  Now that is a first for me.  Normally I would push through it and dig a deeper hole for myself.  I am getting smarter these days, ha! 

>>February 12th, 2010

We got a super cool call from one of my sponsors, Surf Tech, the other day.   They proposed an amazing opportunity to be photographed by a National Geographic and Patagonia photographer, Ben Horton, for their catalog.   We jumped at the opportunity and before we knew it we were well on our way to Yosemite!  Woohoo!!   Oh but I was a bit bummed that we couldn’t bring Belle.   It would have been too hard and she probably would have wanted to be in all the shots with us   My mom and dad took care of her for the day, as they always do when we are away, she is soooo lucky!! 

We met up with Ben and his lovely girfriend Izzi in Mariposa, a small quaint town 30 mins west of Yosemite.  We had the best breakfast at the cutest little cafe while Ben told us stories about his amazing expeditions as a National Geographic photographer.   His last expedition comprised of a 1400 mile trip across Canada with 24 sled dogs and 8 others.  From the -20 degree temps to the slippery treacherous icy patches, they covered all 1400 miles without anyone getting hurt.  It was so exciting to hear all about this adventure.  We also had the privilege of hearing about Ben and Izzi’s trip to Costa Rica complete with details about how close they came to being eaten by crocodiles and bull sharks, YIKES!  This couple is one amazing, hard core, super adventurous team.  Love them!!

Once we made it into Yosemite National Park, the temps dropped by 10 degrees.  It was in the mid to upper 30s which, quite frankly, was way warmer than we thought it would be.  We drove up and around the most beautiful scenery you will find anywhere, and settled on a river bed that looked perfect for a little Stand Up Paddling!   It was surreal.  We were dressed in a couple of base layers, 2 to be exact, and board shorts and booties!   I have to admit I was a bit nervous to step foot into the just above freezing river water.  Brrr!!  Reid was first in and like a pro up on that baord and moving down the river having the best time.  I got in quickly, only get my feet wet but those surf booties are amazing.  They keep you so warm!  As soon as I paddled down the river and looked around at the serene beauty of Yosemite and realized what we were doing, it hit me, that I am one super lucky girl!   I was in the middle of Yosemite National park, paddling up and down a river, with El Capitan in the foreground and Half Dome in the background, snow all around, it was just surreal.  I am so grateful for this opportunity!   Ben shot tons of awesome pics and then we were on our way to another river bed for some different scenery. 

The second place we took pics was just as breath taking as the first.  How could it not be?  Yosemite is one big amazingly beautiful  National Park.   This next set of pics would be taken from underwater.  So yes Ben put on his wetsuit and jumped in with some super cool underwater cameras and lenses and all kinds of sweet stuff!!  He was FREEEZING!!  But such a trooper.  We had to paddle around and under some huge boulders which were right next to where the river dropped off and changed into rapids.  It was the coolest feeling ever to paddle around this nature mnade obstacle course and not get swept down river.  I could feel the power of the river pulling me down river everytime I made a turn around the boulders.  So we had to paddle hard to stay up river   After our second set of pics, we warmed up and got dressed in all our super cozy clothes and headed to another spot. 

This last spot was so fun!  Izzi brought tons of food and we had a picnic alongside the river on thes rocks and made some yummy veggie sandwiches.  We had goat cheese, avocado, sundried tomoato spread, tomatoes, and apples.  Oh yeah and some cookies for dessert!  We were all smiles after our epic day!!  Thanks so much Surf Tech, Ben, Izzi, and Reid for an unforgettable day.

>>January 18th, 2010

This last week was mixed with some really cool opportunities.   Somedays I feel like I am all over the place with so many new ideas and exciting things that I want to dive right into.   I guess that is way better than not knowing what to do and not being super busy!!  On top of my “want to try” list was coaching gymnastics.  Don’t get my wrong,  I do LOVE coaching triathlon, but gymnastics is also so near and dear to my heart.   It was my life for 16 years!  I lived in the gym, starting with 20 hours a week for years to 40 hours a week for the last 6 years.   And back then I LOVED it.   Now, you wouldn’t catch me ever trying that many hours for triathlon again.  That spells injury!   for me at least!  Been there done that!

I had a unique opportunity to coach at a gym where my ex coach’s wife is the head coach.   I also have some friends who have  daughters that attend this gym and they have been trying to get me to coach for years.  I finally gave in and made my way over to the gym and had a long chat with my friend, the head coach.   I started that day and shadowed with her through an entire practice.  It was during that practice where I saw myself all over again as a little girl aspiring to become an Olympian.  It brought chills and tears to my eyes.  At that moment I just knew I needed to be there to help these young girls achieve their dreams.   It was an amazing feeling to go back to that place in my mind and remember exactly what went through my mind at least at one point during every grueling practice.   I coached three days last week and loved every second.  The girls are so sweet and so willing to learn.  They soak in every piece of information I give them and I see the desire to succeed in their eyes.

I was lucky that not only did coaching gymnastics make me smile all week long, I was invited by TRX to take an 8 hour long certification class yesterday in San Francisco.  I was so excited for the invitation.  We actually practiced on the TRX suspension training systems all day long.  It was amazing, I learned so much and even got to demonstrate for the class, some fun and super tough gymnastics moves using the TRX   So now I am officially a TRX trainer.  Woohoo…..Can’t wait to help others discover the most amazing total body workout system.  I am a huge believer.   I think everyone should own a TRX.  Click on this link or copy and paste AND start today, you will see results so quick!!  Have fun!

http://www.fitnessanywhere.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&AFFIL=84Z80dK8

>>January 10th, 2010

Reid, Belle, and I drove up to Pinecrest with our friends Molly, Jeff and their 3 dogs (Max, Cujo, and Stanley).   We planned on spending a couple of hours snow shoeing and letting our dogs lead the way while frolicking in the snow!   It takes a little over 2 hours to get up to the snow.   Surprisingly it was in the 50s as we neared the trailhead.  But within a couple of miles the temps dropped into the mid 40s.  Still super warm for a play day in the snow.

All the dogs were so excited as soon as we pulled up to the trailhead.   Belle was so happy to see her friends and even more excited to romp in the snow  Her favorite friend is Stanley.  They all get along so great, but Stanley especially loves to follow Belle around wherever she goes, up in the woods, off the trails or just way up ahead of us.  Wherever Belle goes, Stanley must follow  They are super cute together!!

Two fun hours of snow shoeing, taking tons of pics, having a mock running race, and just having a blast was all we needed to be all smiles on the drive back home!!  Oh and the stop to have some awesome pizza on the way home was a bonus!  And Starbucks too, YUM!

If you haven’t tried it, you should definitely check out snow shoeing.  It is an awesome workout and you can go as hard or as easy as you want and you still get in a great workout!  Your quads and hammies get in some really great work…oh yeah and so do your lungs at 6000 ft of elevation.  We are already planning another trip to the snow very soon!!

Great cross training makes for a great season to come…..Get out there and try it out

>>December 1st, 2009

Ok, seriously, do you need to do that 6 hour ride on November 29th?   Or that 18 mile run?   If you are traning for a December or January IM or marathon, the answer is yes!  But for the rest of us, take this time to do the things that you have been neglecting all year.  Most importantly rest your body and mind!!   Many people do not take the adequate rest and relaxation time they need year after year, only to wonder why they are burnt out in June/July every season.   It is ok to rest and deviate from what your crazy triathlete or cyclist friends are doing now    You will be the one feeling amazing all season long!  It does work, give it a try! 

Now about those Off season training programs….Hmm, unless they are super easy, include strength and core workouts, and adequate amounts of stretching and recovery, I would say no to them.  I learned the hard way this last season. While my athletes were dong amazing,  I was trying out a different method for myself only and got hurt.  The only sport that  is ok to continue to work hard in over the winter is swimming.  With the help of a master’s swim coach, you can thrive in the pool and remain injury free.   It’s is way less stressful on your body.   Cycling and running during the off season of course is great, but not 6 hours or 20 miles, you get the point!? 

Try to add in some fun spin classes, good core workouts, strength sessions or TRX.   If you want to have even more fun try stand up paddling or surfing.  You will get in an awesome workout and what better way than to be outdoors in the ocean or in a lake   It may not be easy for those of you to in the MidWest or on the East Coast until the spring.  West Coasters, you have no excuses!!  You may even want to try sports you’ve always wanted to try, diving, skiing, snowboarding, cross country skiing, soccer, to name a few.   All are great for endurance athletes.

Rest up, relax, take care of all that good stuff you’ve been putting off and have fun!  You will be fresh and rejuvenated come January 1st!!

>>November 12th, 2009

Click here to view the PDF

Click here to view the PDF

>>November 5th, 2009

I love Stand Up Paddling.   I was first introduced to SUP last winter by a good friend, Brent Allen.  He took Reid and I out to Monterey to teach us how to SUP.  It was awesome, I fell in love immediately.  It’s one of the sports where you need to use your entire core to control every movement.   Being a former gymnast, I LOVE any sport that involves using my upper body and abs.   I am actually better on my hands than on my feet   well maybe not, but close!!

A couple of days ago, Brent invited Reid and I to help out as water safety at the Marin Triathlon with Surf Tech.  We were so excited and totally up for the challenge.  Stand Up Paddling for the 2nd time only and having to lead waves of swimmers was kind of a scary thought, but the scarier the better for the Swanson’s.  We are crazy that way   We had a blast and found our sea legs pretty quickly.   After a good 15 mins of SUP on my SWEET Surf Tech board,  I was feeling pretty confident and relaxed and having an amazing time out in the bay.   If I fell in, it would have been pretty cold, but I was so glad to wear just boardshorts and a sports bra.  I got hot working hard and trying some new tricks. 

After all the swimmers were out of the water, Duke (head sales guru at Surf Tech) wanted to take some pics and have all of us race.  There were 4 of us on boards and all of us were stoked to race each other for fun of course! Yeah right, you know me, HA!  This was so much fun!  Then we got crazier and I was dared to do a handstand.  It took several attempts for me to hold the handstand, but I never fell in…much to my surprise.  The race announcer was calling out my attempt play by play and every tri spectator was watching.  If you know me well enough, you would know that I love the pressure.  I was a gymnast, remember! )

>>September 19th, 2009

Blake of Garmin Slipstream and me

 

I had the awesome opportunity to join Team KCBS/KPIX Ch 5 to ride in the Audi Best Buddies Challenge 100 mile bike ride.  My good friend, Ch 5 weatherwoman Roberta Gonzales invited Reid and I and we couldn’t  say no to this amazing event.  Best Buddies is an organization that supports individuals with intellectual disabilities and Maria Shriver is the spokesperson for this event. 

The ride was absolutely breathe taking , an unbelievable experience.  100 miles with 7000 ft of climbing!  A couple of Garmin Slipstream pro men were in attendance to make the ride even that much more fun!  The Tibco pro women’s team was also there and wanting to get in a good “tempo” ride.  It was so SWEET!  The first 9 miles of the ride started off very controlled with 2 escort Audi TT’s  leading the way!  Reid, our good friend Steve Cramer and I quickly moved up to the front of the pack with the pro riders.  The Garmin guys and Tibco women were so sweet and fun to ride with.  We had a good pack of about 30 strong riders, moving along at a good fast pace along rolling terrain.  It was not until we passed through Big Sur, Ventana hill that the pace got a bit too fast for my hill climbing   Reid, Cramer and the pro riders were putting the hurt on the rest of us.  But I was lucky to have a couple nice guys slow up for me so that I could pace off of them up that crazy climb!  At the top of the climb, Reid and Cramer were waiting for me.  I had to make a quick pit stop, which put us even further behind the first pack of riders.  So, of course Reid said we should work hard to catch them.  Gulp!  I’m always up for a challenge and Cramer happened to be up for it too.  We were flying up and down the California Coast, trying so hard to catch back on.  It hurt, we were all working super hard, breathing extra hard, and feeling the serious burn in our legs.  But within a couple of miles, we were back on and so happy to sit in and draft.  Phew!

But here comes the crazy part.  A mile after catching the group, we hit some big rollers and I was feeling it.  My legs were screaming, my lungs were burning, but my mind was fresh and willing to deal with it all   I stayed on for as long as I could until I felt like I was going to pass out.  I backed off at that point, only to have a CHP officer on his motorcycle tell me to hold on.  I was like what??  He said “hold on” and pointed to a part of his motorcycle that I could actually hold on to.  SUPER COOL!  When does this ever happen!  AMAZING!  I was so stoked.  But I was also too scared to hold on for long.  It was scary )  So, I let go and he then said “jump on.”  He let me draft off him for a bit, before he had to go back up to the front of  the group since he was the lead escort!!  Once I caught back on of course the pace picked up again.  This time I killed myself to stay on and even got some nice pushes from my hubbie, he was not going to let me fall off again! 

By mile 75, we hit the biggest climb of the day.  Not only was it long, but it was steep too.  I was actually loving it.  I was so stoked to have gotten so far with some amazing riders.  Plus this was my longest ride in a year!  I couldn’t believe how great I was feeling despite all the crazy hard efforts.  However by Mile 90 both Cramer and I were toast, cooked, done!  Reid, on the other hand, was still looking fresh and ready for another 100 miles   We stopped to take some pics at a cool, popular tourist spot with a ton of elephant seals.  After the pic, we got back on our bikes even though Cramer and I were ready to lay on the ground and take a nap and rode the last semi rolling 10 miles to the finish.  Our ride time was just a bit over 5 hours.  Crazy!  This is my fastest 100 miles ever and I am coming off a 6 month injury.  It must have been the great company and great cause that inspired me to ride fast   Thank you Best Buddies, Garmin riders, Tibco women, Reid, Cramer, Roberta, and Darrell for an AMAZING, unforgettable experience. 

We were taken care of extremely well at the finish line.  The Best BBQ ever and several hours later another unbelievable BBQ at Hearst Castle, complete with an open bar!  Super fun times….

A week later and I was back at it, competing in a local triathlon.  700 meter swim, 19 mile bike and 4 mile trail run.  I haven’t run more than 3 miles a week or every other week since having this crazy injury 6 months ago. So going into this race, I thought I would just jog/walk the run.  But I was first out of the water, beating the guys   and felt so good that I thought I would race ’til the end.  I ran a, crazy for me, quick 4 miles and it didn’t hurt that bad!  I guess a 6 month taper works well for me HA!  Seriously, I had so much fun and loved all the local athletes and friends cheering along the way!  There were 700 of us racing in beautiful Pleasanton, CA and I won and had a blast doing it  

 

>>September 10th, 2009

I love my job as an ambassador as well as educator for lululemon athletica. Everyday is a new day at lululemon. We have so much fun on the job and off the job. We are a tight knit group and we truly believe in the company, its culture, mission, and its bright future. One of the greatest perks is bringing Belle to work with me. Everyone loves her there and our guests are always so happy to see her. She puts a huge smile on everyone’s face! Here are some pics to give you a glimpse of what it is like to work and have fun amongst amazing individuals at work

>>August 21st, 2009

I had an amazing fun time at my last open water swim race at Lake Sonoma. My athlete and good friend John Jeha and I drove 90 mins to get to the race venue. We got there with little, but plenty of time to spare for a swim race After checking in and being placed in wave 1, we got in the 73 degree lake to warm up. The water felt awesome, warm and inviting. Only 2 people wore wetsuits, which was great to see. I love going to all these Pacific Masters sanctioned races where most everyone competes sans wetsuit. Although skin suits made by Blue Seventy and TYR are still legal, they won’t be for long which will be even more fun to see how everyone stacks up with a plain ‘ol swimsuit.

Wave 1 was a very eventful start. It was an in water start and we were treading water for 5 minutes before the start. We all agreed to head back to shore after 4 minutes since we were all getting a little chilly and restless. As most of us headed back to shore, the RD told us to go back and within 10 seconds we were off. Talk about brutal swim starts, wow this one was one of them! Most of the top PM swimmers were present and ready to fight for clear water. I was lucky to get in a great spot and get pulled along behind a super fast guy, who ended up winning. I felt great and loved every second of this full contact start I guess I just LOVE swimming so much that I feel in my element and super calm. As soon as we got out about 200 meters, I saw my friend John to my right. Since we are pretty close in pace, I decided to swim next to him and see if we could work together. But he seemed to be swimming off course a bit, so I took a hard line to my left and got slightly ahead of him.

As I approached the turn around buoy, I had this annoying woman slapping my feet with every stroke I took. This had to have been the most annoying swimmer ever. I kicked hard once to get away from her, but no luck there. I surged a couple more times and again she clung on. She kept pushing my feet down and clobbering my calves for the entire swim. I seriously considered stopping and yelling at her, but I know that is a total waste of energy. So with 100 meters to go I went hard, kicked tons and tried to make one last ditch effort to get rid of this nuisance. This time she came right up to my side and started slapping her arms down hard to try to get me to move from the most direct line. WTH?? Who does that? I sprinted at the end but this lady had the nerve after all that she had done, to almost trip me to get the half step win over me. OMG, I was so mad!! I couldn’t believe it. She looked at me and said good job. I couldn’t control my frustration and told her that she was totally all over me, that it was rude, bad etiquette, etc….. She didn’t know what to say except to shrug her shoulders and utter “that’s proper open water swimming.” NO WAY! I continued to tell her that she was wrong in what she did and she needs to learn some proper swim etiquette. I should have said more, but at that point my friend John had just exited the water and told me that she was lame and just to forget it all. It was cool to see the other swimmers tell me that I was in the right and that woman was totally rude and should have been dq’d. Anyway, I had a super fun race, was 3rd overall and 1st in my division. I was super happy with my result and even more happy to learn that I was beat only by an ex Olympian. The other woman who clobbered me all day, didn’t count. Great experience and another swim event under my belt. I’m starting to feel like a fish